not there yet

      My tightly packed teacher bag hanging over my left shoulder, and my right hand fingers holding the ribbon on a red velvet torte package, I walk across the road and then pause. The first homework assignment from a new photography class has been shadowing me like a cloud all day long. I kind of understand what I am supposed to do. Not really. The first step is to choose a place to take pictures every day of the week. Not a big place. Not too small. In my case it would have to be close to school so I could take photos in a daylight. In the morning I came from the train looking in every direction, taking a detour to school, thinking of possible places. Nothing caught my eye.
       Walking from school to the train station after the lessons, my eyes keep looking right and left. Still nothing. I distract myself with buying a torte to celebrate my wedding anniversary.
       Now, standing in front of the national theatre, I find the curve of the stairs inviting. It could be a good place. Maybe. People and dogs might pass. Something could happen.
       I go closer to the side door, put my bag and torte down, dig out the camera from the bag and start taking photos.
        As part of the assignment I should have a reason (why?) I chose this place, and an idea what I want to show, something I wish to highlight.
        I can't answer these questions. I don't know what I am doing. In all honesty I very likely look ridiculous squatting on the stairs of an opera house and taking pictures of who knows what.

        I return to the stair two days in a row. I take pictures from different angles. I try to catch the people and a dog (only one dog showed up) but they move fast and end out of focus. Nothing interesting happens on the stairs. It was ridiculous to choose the stairs.
   
      On the fourth day I get sick. I can't take pictures of the fresh snow on the stairs. I can't go to the stairs in the evening of a performance to take pictures of all the legs and shoes on the stairs. I have very few pictures.  None with a story, an idea, a message or fascinating detail. Knowing that I am the least experienced of the group*, not completely in command of the technical side of photographing yet, I can imagine how others look at my pics and shrug their shoulders and shake their head, maybe not publicly but in their minds, and the teacher can't find a positive thing to say, I play with the idea of not turning in the homework. But I am not this kind of a student. I will share the pictures and hope that the comments others give will help me to do better next time. Currently I check the assessment box: not there, yet.

* from Saturday's blog post: 
"Starting a new photography class. Once again I am the least experienced in the group. The group has someone who started taking pictures 50 years ago, one who works as a photographer in a newspaper, one who is a leader of street photographers' group, one who took a year long photography course at the university, one who has her own studio, one who takes photos for websites, and some others who started their introductions with "I have taken photos as long as I remember" and then me, who only less than two years ago learned what the buttons on my camera (Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ8) mean, and usually takes pictures of nature and teacups, and even that I haven't done over the past three weeks. I think I am still going to enjoy the class because the teacher started the lesson with a poem."